The video is real. Freelance journalist James Foley, 40, was beheaded on camera by the Islamic State. That's the group that's been terrorizing religious minorities in Iraq. They said Foley was killed as retaliation for U.S. airstrikes. At the end of the video titled "A Message to America," the killer threatened to execute another journalist, American Steven Joel Sotloff. The killer, who may be a British national, holds Sotloff and warns Obama that his life "depends on your next decision." Obama made a statement Wednesday, without mentioning Sotloff, and basically said the fight is still on. He called for Iraq to unify around a new government to fight the extremists, saying, "There has to be a common effort to extract this cancer so it does not spread." The murder of Foley is the 31st death of a journalist on the job this year, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. Foley's parents said on Wednesday, "We are just very proud of Jimmy." We are, too.

Buttons in support of James Foley are displayed during a panel discussion about the importance and dangers of reporting on world conflicts at a Free James Foley event in Boston.
Don Emmert, AFP/Getty Images

John, center, and Diane Foley, left, parents of James Foley, listen to a panel discussion about the importance and dangers of reporting on world conflicts at a Free James Foley event in Boston in 2013.
Don Emmert, AFP/Getty Images

Freed journalists Nigel Chandler, left, of Britain, Manu Brabo of Spain, James Foley of the U.S. and his compatriot Clare Morgana Gillis, right, arrive at Rixos Hotel in Tripoli, Libya, on May 18, 2011, following their release. They had disappeared April 4 while covering the conflict in Libya.
Mahmud Turkia, AFP/Getty Images

John Foley, left, and his wife Diane, back to camera, talk with supporters July 25, 2013, in Rochester, N.H. after a moment of silence for James Foley, their missing son. Foley, 39, was last seen Nov. 22, 2012, in northwest Syria.
Jim Cole, AP

The ultimate question: Will Darren Wilson be arrested? A grand jury began hearing evidence Wednesday on whether the Ferguson, Mo., police officer who shot and killed 18-year-old Michael Brown on Aug. 9. will be charged. Protesters hit up the St. Louis County Justice Center in Clayton where the grand jury will convene. U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder is in Ferguson now. He wrote in an op-ed for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that "hundreds" of potential witnesses have been interviewed and said the inquiry will "take time to complete." Oh, and in case you missed it, a CNN anchor is in hot water after asking why the police were using tear gas instead of water cannons to get Ferguson protesters to break up. Remember those images of civil rights protesters being blasted with fire hoses during the 1960s? Not cool.

Posted!

A link has been posted to your Facebook feed.

A member of the Federal Protective Service asks demonstrators to stay off the steps leading to the Thomas F. Eagleton federal courthouse during a protest in St. Louis. About 100 protesters marched from city hall to the courthouse as they continue to press for broader reforms to local and federal law enforcement following the shooting death of Michael Brown by police.
Jeff Roberson, AP

Members of the Tauheed Youth Group pray with demonstrators and members of the 'Justice for Michael Brown Leadership Coalition' during a march near the Buzz Westfall Justice Center in Clayton, Mo.
Larry W. Smith, epa

People pray after marching about a mile to the police station to protest the shooting of teenager Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. Brown's shooting on Aug. 9 by a Ferguson police officer has sparked more than week of protests, riots and looting in the St. Louis suburb.
Charlie Riedel, AP

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder shakes hands with Bri Ehsan, 25, following his meeting with students at St. Louis Community College-Florissant Valley in Ferguson, Mo. Holder was in Ferguson to oversea the federal government's investigation into the shooting death of 18-year-old Michael Brown by a police officer on Aug. 9th.
Pablo Martinez Monsivais, pool

A citizen peacekeeper tries to keep protesters back as police advance on Aug. 18 in Ferguson, Mo. The Aug. 9 shooting of Michael Brown by a police officer has touched off demonstrations in the St. Louis suburb where police have used riot gear and tear gas against protesters.
Christian Gooden, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, via AP

Attorney Benjamin Crump, left, holds a diagram produced during a second autopsy of shooting victim Michael Brown as forensic pathologist Michael Balden speaks at a news conference Aug. 18 in Ferguson, Mo. The independent autopsy shows Brown was shot at least six times on Aug. 9 by a Ferguson police officer.
Jeff Roberson, AP

Tear gas canisters hit the pavement around a woman demonstrating on Aug. 17 against the killing of Michael Brown, 18, by a police officer in Ferguson, Mo. Despite the Brown family's continued call for peaceful demonstrations, violent protests have erupted nearly every night since his Aug. 9 death.
Scott Olson, Getty Images

Demonstrators speak to Capt. Ronald Johnson of the Missouri State Highway Patrol, who was appointed by the governor to take control of security operations in the city of Ferguson.
Joe Raedle, Getty Images

Lesley McSpadden and Michael Brown, the parents of slain 18-year-old Michael Brown, attend an event for their son at the Greater Grace Church in Ferguson, Mo. The event was lead by the Rev. Al Sharpton in support of justice for Michael Brown.
Joe Raedle, Getty Images

Police fire tear gas early Aug. 17 at a crowd of protesters who disobeyed the midnight curfew in Ferguson, Mo. People are protesting the shooting death of Michael Brown, 18, on Aug. 9.
Roberto Rodriguez, european pressphoto agency

Malik Shabazz, National President of Black Lawyers for Justice, carries a picture of Michael Brown as he leads demonstrators on West Florissant Avenue in Ferguson.
Roberto Rodriguez, european pressphoto agency

Ferguson Police Chief Thomas Jackson releases the name of the the officer accused of fatally shooting Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager. Jackson announced that the officer's name is Darren Wilson.
Jeff Roberson, AP

Security camera footage from a convenience store in Ferguson shows a brief confrontation on Aug. 9. A report released by Ferguson Police Chief Thomas Jackson says the footage shows a confrontation between Michael Brown and an employee at the store. The report says that Brown and his friend, Dorian Johnson, stole a box of cigars from the store shortly before Brown's death.
Ferguson Police Department via AP

Ferguson Police Chief Thomas Jackson, center, leaves a press conference after he announced the name of the Ferguson police officer responsible for the shooting death of teenager Michael Brown.
Scott Olson, Getty Images

Missouri State Highway PatrolCapt. Ronald Johnson, right, walks with demonstrators on West Florissant Avenue during a demonstration in Ferguson. Johnsonwas appointed by the governor to take control of security operations in the city.
Scott Olson, Getty Images

Following the shooting death of Michael Brown, Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon speaks about the unrest in the town of Ferguson to residents, faith and community leaders during a forum held at Christ the King UCC Church in Florissant, Mo.
Scott Olson, Getty Images

Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon speaks about the unrest in the town of Ferguson to residents, faith and community leaders during a forum held at Christ the King UCC Church in Florissant, Mo.
Scott Olson, Getty Images

President Barack Obama speaks to reporters in Edgartown, Mass., about developments in Iraq and the police shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. Obama is vacationing on the island for about two weeks.
Steven Senne, AP

Tear gas canisters burst around a protester in Ferguson, Mo.Protests turned violent for a fourth night with people lobbing Molotov cocktails at police, who responded with smoke bombs and tear gas to disperse the crowd. A police shooting of unarmed Michael Brown, 18, sparked the protests.
Scott Olson, Getty Images

A resident wears a button with a picture of Michael Brown during a news conference with Ferguson Police Chief Thomas Jackson, who was fielding questions related to the shooting death of Brown.
Scott Olson, Getty Images

Lesley McSpadden, the mother of slain teenager Michael Brown, joins a capacity crowd at Greater St. Marks Family Church in St. Louis, Mo., to discuss the killing of her son and the resulting civil unrest.
Scott Olson, Getty Images

Civil rights leader Rev. Al Sharpton speaks about the killing of teenager Michael Brown at a press conference held on the steps of the old courthouse in St. Louis, Mo., on Aug. 12. Brown was shot and killed by a police officer Aug. 9 in suburban Ferguson, Mo.
Scott Olson, Getty Images

Guests listen to speakers during at a community forum Aug. 11 hosted by the St. Louis County NAACP at Murchison Tabernacle Church to discuss the killing of Mike Brown, 18, and the community unrest that followed his death.
Scott Olson, Getty Images

St. Louis County tactical police officers fire tear gas along West Florissant Road, two days after a police officer shot and killed unarmed 18-year-old Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. The FBI has opened an inquiry into the incident.
Robert Cohen, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, via epa

A man is helped away after being hit in the face with a rubber bullet as police advance on protesters to force them from the business district into nearby neighborhoods in Ferguson, Mo.
Scott Olson, Getty Images

Bobby Armour, a deacon, allows a woman in a wheelchair inside at the Murchison Tabernacle CME Church in Normandy, Mo. The church was packed for the NAACP press conference and many people were forced to stand outside and listen to speakers.
.J.B. Forbes, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, via AP

Tactical officers line up in Ferguson, Mo. Authorities used tear gas and rubber bullets to try to disperse a large crowd Aug. 11 that had gathered at the site of a burned-out convenience store damaged a night earlier, when many businesses in the area were looted.
Robert Cohen, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, via AP

Lesley McSpadden, the mother of slain teenager Michael Brown, shows a painting of her and her son through her car window as she leaves a press conference held by civil rights leader Al Sharpton in St. Louis, Mo., on Aug. 12.
Scott Olson, Getty Images

Lesley McSpadden, mother of Michael Brown, speaks during a press conference at Jennings Mason Temple Church of God In Christ, in Jennings, Mo., on Aug. 11. She appealed for justice and no violence.
Michael B. Thomas, Getty Images

"All of my friends have been killed. I'm sick of it," protester Jamell Spann yelled at police officers who were clearing demonstrators from the area surrounding the police station in downtown Ferguson, Mo.
Robert Cohen, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, via AP

"This is a shooting of an 18-year boy who was supposed to start school today," said protester Fiona Wilson of Ferguson. "I don't want this to be appear as a racial thing. It's a police brutality issue. ... That's why I am out here. I want more white people to come out."
Laurie Skrivan, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, via AP

"He was my second cousin. It's just so wrong," said Tony Petty who holds his granddaughter as he joins a protest against the police shooting of Michael Brown in front of the Ferguson police station.
Laurie Skrivan, St. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP

Activists Zaki Baruti, left, and Anthony Shahid, second from right, try to quiet an angry crowd so Ferguson Police Chief Tom Jackson can speak. After several attempts, the chief left the stage.
J.B. Forbes, AP

Lesley McSpadden, left, is comforted by her husband, Louis Head, after her 18-year-old son, Michael Brown, was shot by police and killed in the middle of the street in Ferguson, Mo.
Huy Mach, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, via AP

Protesters confront police during a rally Aug. 10 against the shooting of Michael Brown, 18, by police in Ferguson, Mo. The protesters rallied in front of the police and fire departments in Ferguson following St. Louis County Police Chief Jon Belmar's newsconference.
Sid Hastings, AP

Lesley McSpadden, center, drops rose petals on the blood stains from her son Michael Brown, who was shot and killed by police in Ferguson, Mo. McSpadden, told an acquaintance the shooting was "wrong and it was cold-hearted," the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.
Huy Mach, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, via AP

Cleveland Browns head coach Mike Pettine announced Wednesday that Brian Hoyer will begin the season as starting quarterback. Given Johnny Manziel's inability to make any highlight-reel plays in the preseason that didn't involve a middle finger, this was a smart decision. But Hoyer's ascendance to the starting role isn't all it's cracked up to be. Cleveland opens its 2014 campaign at Pittsburgh, vs. New Orleans and vs. Baltimore, before heading into a Week 4 bye. The Browns are unlikely to have suspended wide receiver Josh Gordon in any of those games, which means coming out of the gate 0-3 is a serious possibility. Even if the Browns are better than expected, it's hard to imagine them winning more than one of those games. If that happens, it'll be easy for Pettine to give Hoyer the hook and start Manziel in Week 5, making the whole preseason quarterback controversy nothing but a distant memory.

Supreme Court blocks gay marriage in Virginia day before couples to wed

The Supreme Court blocked gay and lesbian couples from marrying in Virginia Wednesday as it edges closer to deciding whether same-sex marriage should be legalized nationwide. Couples were set to start getting hitched on Thursday morning. The ruling puts on hold a federal appeals court's verdict last month striking down the state's ban on gay marriage. That case, like others that ended similarly in Utah and Oklahoma, is being appealed to the Supreme Court. "While we are disappointed that marriages will have to wait, this was not unexpected," said Tim Bostic, the lead plaintiff in the case. "We feel that this case deserves to be heard by the Supreme Court and be finally decided for all Americans."

It's the end of an era. SeaWorld will end the practice of having trainers in the water during killer whale shows. After a trainer died in 2010, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited the park and recommended trainers stop going in the water with the whales. At first, SeaWorld fought back, but a federal appeals court upheld the citations. Last week, the park said it wouldn't appeal to the Supreme Court. The trainer's death was the subject of last year's documentary Blackfish, which raised questions about whether these highly intelligent and social animals should be in captivity. It also did a real number on the SeaWorld brand. No, I still haven't watched it. No, you can't make me.

A nun waits to greet Pope Francis at the end of his weekly general audience in Paul VI Hall at the Vatican.(Photo: Riccardo De Luca, AP)

George W. Bush donated to a good cause, protected his wife's hair and gave Bill Clinton a birthday gift all in the name of ALS.

CLOSE

Accepting the challenge of his daughter and others, former president George W. Bush became the latest famous figure to have ice water dumped on his head to raise money for ALS research. Bush challenged former president Bill Clinton to follow suit.
AP